It’s unclear if Quebec City’s Videotron Centre will eventually play host to an NHL team of its own - we may know more about that later on today, though not necessarily decisively - but fans enjoyed an appetizer on Monday.
The Montreal Canadiens “hosted” the Pittsburgh Penguins last night, and while they didn’t seem to enjoy much of a home-ice advantage, they won 4-1.
That’s not really the point, though. This was all about giving the arena a test-run, and provide the intriguing atmosphere of Montreal playing in Quebec as an added bonus.
Some people tried to get a Go Habs Go chant going. They got drowned out by boos.
— Arpon Basu (@ArponBasu) September 29, 2015
Let’s take a look at different viewpoints from last night’s proceedings, including people mocking the name Videotron Centre (sadly without evoking “Tron” or “Videodrome”).
Quebec's Videotron Centre hosts its first NHL game tonight. Says Patrice Bergeron: "It's twice the size (of Le Colisee) and it's beautiful."
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) September 28, 2015
Impressive new Videotron Centre facility, playing host to the #Pens vs #Habs tonight. pic.twitter.com/kqZBREM71E
— Ed Hall (@HallSNet) September 28, 2015
Another excellent pre-game look at Centre Vidéotron, taken by @mtlgazette's @darioayalaphoto pic.twitter.com/7Wl0T8oM3p
— Dave Stubbs 🇨🇦 (@Dave_Stubbs) September 29, 2015
Nice shot of Centre Vidéotron taken by @mtlgazette's @darioayalaphoto during tonight's #Habs #Pens warmup pic.twitter.com/3DI6iSbnnE
— Dave Stubbs 🇨🇦 (@Dave_Stubbs) September 29, 2015
Videotron Centre sounds like the version of Redbox Darth Vader or Vladimir Putin would go to.
— Seth Rorabaugh (@SethRorabaugh) September 28, 2015
"Videotron Centre" sounds like the place they take people to get vaporized in Logan's Run.
— Dan (@cultureoflosing) September 28, 2015
The building isn’t the only make-or-break factor for expansion, of course.